After 41 weeks of gestation, 48 hours of labor and 1 hour of pushing we have a BEAUTIFUL baby boy--Levi Westray Koehn. Next to my wife, I have never loved someone so much! He is absolutely perfect in every way! As most of you know, we purposefully did not want to know the gender prior to arrival. Upon delivery, I was ECSTATIC that I have a SON! I get to raise a little man! I am so in love with him it is not even funny.

I cried many tears through my wife's long and strenuous labor and bawled with JOY when my son was born! Katie was in labor for 36 hours at home, and the baby's head was not engaging properly--thus not progressing labor. I am head over heels in love with, and flat out PROUD of my wife and amazed at her strength to endure 36 hours of unmedicated labor at home. After frustration, many tears and prayer we decided to proceed to Richland Memorial Hospital. My wife, the home-labor Queen, was absolutely exhausted and fatigued, in need of pain management and a contraction boost from Pitocin.

We were told by a tactless OB/GYN Attending that Katie's dilation was digressing and our baby was possibly in "deep transverse arrest" which basically means the baby's head is deep in the pelvis, the face is pointing transversely from L-R, or R-L and the labor will not progress and we should very much consider a C-section... How depressing!

Again, with many many tears, prayers and deliberation we decided that if Katie got checked one last time... if she was not dilated any more and the baby's head was the same that we go ahead and get the C-section because in the end all I want is a healthy momma and a healthy baby. She got checked again and the OB said "Hmm... well... you are now fully dilated and the baby's head is OA (occiput anterior--basically the best possible position). Do you think you want to push..?" Uh... yeah!? The LORD turned the baby, perfectly in position.

Katie pushed for an hour and gave birth to a beautiful baby Levi! I screamed around the room,unable to see because of my tears, screaming "IT'S A BOY! WE HAVE A BOY!" I am in awe of God's awesome providence, control, mercy, grace, love and faithfulness in the birth of our son. Levi is a true miracle!

Levi Westray
8 lbs 6.7 oz
20 3/4 "

I cannot believe it, but we are 36 weeks into the pregnancy! I am amazed at how well this pregnancy has gone. Onna was a delight (as much as she could be... kidding) throughout the whole pregnancy. She was not overwhelmed with morning sickness. She didn't have so many aversions to foods. She did have a bit of heart burn, which I hear means our baby may have a good deal of hair.

I have been wading my way through Paramedic school one day at a time. We are close to finishing our OB/Pediatrics section just in time for this kid! The only thing is that in this line of work, we mainly learn about all the things that go WRONG! Learning about placenta previa and omphalocele have done wonders for this father to be! NOT!

Onna had hear 36 week check up with the midwife complete with blood tests and an ultrasound. All of Onna's levels are within normal limits and our baby is perfectly normal (as much as it can be being our child, anyway!). Her placenta is up high, the baby's intestines are all inside, the baby is head down and LOA (left occiput anterior) which is an optimal position... we have decided to not find out the gender to add to the surprise. The midwife knows, but we will soon find out. All that we want is a healthy baby, and it looks like we will have just that!

We are EXTREMELY excited and healthily freaked out. This is a HUGE responsibility. One day we go from no kids to 'hey, here is this baby we made who we need to be aware of for the rest of their life'. This isn't going to be someone else's kid that we can pass off when they need feeding or changing. This isn't a "trial run" where we can have the kid all day and give it back at night. No, this kid is staying for good! He or she will be held most of its early life. Someone will be holding it most of the time. We have to start thinking about teaching our child by example... living with good habits and such... have a good attitude... showing love as much as possible... this kid will see EVERYTHING we do and remember it, consciously or subconsciously. We will have to be even more accountable for our attitudes, our time, our money, etc. And that is all good.

We are looking forward to the baby coming soon!

Yet another project just about completed! It took the weekend but we have successfully refinished our hardwood floors!

My mother and father-in-law came down for the weekend and we rented a floor belt sander and an edger from Ho'me De'Pot. As you may recall from an earlier post, we had replaced many pieces of our hardwood floor due to termite damage. The new pieces were natural and the old pieces were some orange-brown stain.

For about 7 hours I used the floor sander with rough-medium-fine sandpaper. It got just about everything except the edges which Ron tackled with the edger. Our hallway was barely large enough to use the sander and most of it was done with the edger. I was about ready to fall over halfway through the night. We were determined to get the stain on that night so it would set over night and so we wouldn't have to wait 8 hours and get nothing done. We were up until 0300! We bought two stains. When we started putting the first one down, immediately I said "Is it just me, or is this the same color we just took off?" Onna and I hated our floors before because they were orange! What goes with orange? We couldn't have an area rug or anything because nothing (other than door-hinge) rhymes with nor matches orange! The second stain, which had my vote all along, did not have orange in it, but was more brown. It is a little darker than our original, but... so what? We are both extremely happy with the turnout. We ended up applying three coats of semi-gloss urethane to it and it looks great!

We almost have a new house!

I have heard horror stories about pregnancy and what monsters mothers-to-be can become. I have to say, Onna has been a wonderful mother-to-be and co-parent-to-be. We have both been involved in our baby's life even before it has been born. Almost every night we either listen to the baby's heartbeat or feel the baby move. There is life inside my wife! There is a little me and her in there who already has a personality of his/her own! Amazing.

As you can see, (and I'm not just saying this because she's my wife and the mother of my child --allegedly) my wife makes a beautiful pregnant woman. It is fitting that her career-path is mothers and babies. She will be 27 weeks on Tuesday. It's amazing to think that in only 10 weeks she will be full-term and in 13 weeks she will be DUE!

I am a little scared to be a father because I am worried that I won't love my kids enough or the right way. I have seen and met a lot of messed up people and, though I am no psychologist, I believe it is linked to bad parenting. If children don't get love from their parents, then where to they go to get it?

I cannot wait, and am extremely excited to invest myself in my child and develop good habits, perhaps habits I didn't have growing up, and develop them early. I don't care what my child does for a living (though I could list off what I would not prefer) but what I do care about is the character of my child. I don't want to pressure my child to be successful and that failure is not an option. I want to raise my child to try and that quitting is not an option. What does it merit my child if I teach him to be successful in everything no matter what it takes and that if he fails that he is useless? What kind of person will he grow up to be? But what if I teach him to try his hardest and put forth an honest effort and to maintain integrity and honor no matter the situation and to not compromise character for success? What if I teach him that the only way to not succeed is to not try and not teach him uselessness but to teach him that there are second chances even if he does not succeed at first?

How to I raise my child to make the right choices? How do I raise my child to know that my love is not conditional, not based on earning my love? How do I raise my child to love unconditionally and not base loving others on what benefits him? How can I direct my child without forcing him, but give him enough freedom without ignoring him? Where is the happy-medium in parenting?

Should I be scared to be called "dad?"

Sorry it has been so long since my last blog! More has happened other than construction projects...

So, one day I was at work, ho-hum as normal... Katie gives me a call as I'm getting off work and on the way home. She was rambling on and getting upset because she couldn't find anyplace that had white-meat fried chicken... "I went to Church's Chicken and all they have is dark meat! They won't have any for like 10 more minutes... You have to stop by and get some chicken. I NEED CHICKEN!" My first though? SHE'S PREGNANT. So I stop by and get some chicken, white meat, of course. So I come home, the hero, chicken in bucket and walk in to find a pregnancy test in my face. BLUE LINE. WE'RE HAVING A BABY!

As I was saying, it has been a long time since my last blog. We're 21 weeks pregnant... more than half way there! We are EXTREMELY EXCITED! We are due 10 Oct 2007 and will be having a home birth. We have been fortunate enough to have a fetal dopplar scope so we have been able to monitor the baby's heartbeat from time to time---a healthy 160 bpm.

We will find out the gender of the baby around 10 Oct 07... We will keep you updated!

One more aspect of my project is almost completed! Yesterday, Keith, (our small group leader) and I ran a new natural gas line into my fire place.

We started by removing the gas meter, removing parts of an old line, putting in a T-coupling to allow a new line to be run off of the old line, then installed a valve so we could have heat while working on the new line.

I got to use my DeWalt HAMMERDRILL and a HUGE masonry bit! I drilled a hole in the side of my house where I "thought" it needed to be drilled, because of how I wanted it run into my fireplace. By the grace of God we were able to match the gas line with the hole I drilled.

I also drilled the hole in the fireplace where I "thought" it needed to be, based on where I drilled the hole into the crawl space. Again, grace. In order to run the line, I ended up having to cut my duct-work (SORRY ABE!) with my sawzall, layer the flaps, secure it with duct tape, cap it with a plastic bag and secure that with duct tape. It is no professional job, but it gave me about 1.5 feet more to move from the 1.5 feet I lost trying to run a gas line in that space. I was having to strattle the gas line, while securing it using one hand, because it was too tight for me to turn and lift my other hand. Once it was threaded, then I could back-up and tighten using my pipe wrench.

After a tube of pipe-dope, a sawzall, a hammer drill with masonry bit, 2 sandwiches, some fig-neutons (fruit and cake) and soapy water, the gas line is installed and I am all set to finish my fireplace. It sure was a long time coming! Once I am done with this, then we can work on tearing up carpet in the bedroom finishing the floors. We are ALMOST DONE!

NOTE TO SUBSCRIBERS:

If you EVER have to replace floor joists, I cannot over-emphasize the need for your TWO NEW VERY BEST FRIENDS. With them, you can accomplish just about ANYTHING!

<--house jack

"sawzall"-->

Well, on with the projects! I am still very well in the midst of my projects. Being the novice that I am, I do not often anticipate ALL of the materials I will need for a project. Thank goodness a Lowes is only a few miles away! The CURRENT project is the fireplace.

The concrete slab has been poured and last night I added the block and mortar. Though I am no mason (neither "social club" nor craftsman), I think it turned out well. The mortar had the consistancy of wet sand, and in my mind would dry as such. I trust it will turn out fine. I just kind of slapped some on there and put down the block, trying to squeeze in some mortar between the blocks, if I could. It was a very tight fit.

Unfortunately, my head had a few obscenities floating around as I hit my head and back many-a-time on the fireplace. MAN, I am ready for this thing to be done! It was a small space when I first started... It is even smaller and more frustrating now! I can only mortar from ONE side, the interior. As great as it would be to low-crawl a bucket of mortar under the house... I think I may just let it be.

WHAT IS NEXT: Once this stuff hardens, my next step is to measure and install a gas line. I will need the measurements and have a good idea where I need my couplings and angles. I will take those to Lowes, have them cut and thread... and I anticipate it will take 3 trips to get it correct. I will have to have the gas company turn off the gas so I can put in a valve off of which to work. Theoretically (not the time for theory, I know) I should be able to have the gas turned back on, once the valve is installed. I can then install the threaded pipe with pipe wrenches, pipe-dope and some elbow grease, and more pipe-dope. I will need my trusty hammerdrill and a masonry bit to make my holes through the house and the cinder-block. Once my gas-line is installed, I will support it with metal hangers and will fill the fireplace with 57-stone and leave approximately 4-6 inches for concrete. My gas line will be capped and have a plastic bag over it with duct-tape to keep it pretty. Once the concrete is level and I have measured and compensated for the granite harth we will install, I will let it harden, while keeping it a little moist so it will not crack. "WAH-LAH!" (I don't speak French! ...Voi La? Viola? Whatever!) I may stain/protect the concrete somehow... THEN we should be able to install the gas logs... YEEHAW! Simple, RIGHT!?!?! WRONG! ---PAIN IN THE ARSE!

It sure has been a busy time at the Koehn Bungalo these past few months. It seems that one project comes after another. Will we EVER be finished with projects!?!?

The first project to frustrate us was the hardwood floors. It turns out that we had active termites in our floors. The exterminator sprayed and finally eradicated them. During Christmas weekend, when family came down, Ron, Howell, Bobby and I worked on the floors and were able to get in the new boards prior to lunch! I am very pleased. I still have yet to sand them down and redo the whole floor so it all matches... but we have a floor!

The next project was more of a want than a necessity. Though I could argue that a good, solid work bench is necessary, having a floor does take precedence. I decided to make this thing very substantial. I used regular pine for the framing and pressure treated 4x4s for the legs with solid 2x10s for the top. I am quite pleased with it. It offers a great work area and also a way to organize all my junk. Well... most of it. It is 8 feet long and I have argued that should we ever have to shelter refugees, this could also double as a bunk bed for 2 adults, or 1 adult and 2 children or 4 children... ANYWAY. It is the first project for making my shop. All I need now is MORE TOOLS!

The most recent (and current can of worms) is replacing the floor of our fireplace. It all started with the harth being uneven... so being the investigatory craftsman that I am, I survey the underlying cause... the verdict, lowsy fix-menship. It is half-collapsed under the house and I remove most of it by hand. I procede to knock the rest out with a sledge hammer and now have a giant HOLE in my floor... this time it goes ALL THE WAY to the dirt!

I plan on pouring a slab of concrete, letting it set-up a bit, ancor the cinder-blocks in it, mortar the blocks, fill at least 75% of the space with "57-stone" and top it off with concrete leaving a lip so I can put granite in the harth.

THE PROBLEM, however, is that two floor joists are so eaten by termites that I removed most of it with my hand! So, now the fireplace project is on hold until I can get my hands on a reciprocating saw to cut out the bad boards, then I need to insert NEW boards (pressure treated). Once I get those secured, I need to jack up my floor and put supports under the new boards... Once this is accomplished... THEN I can begin my fireplace project. Until then we have another hole in our floor...

WHEN WILL IT END?!?!

Well, it has been THREE years of wedded bliss! It is hard to fathom that three years has passed, already. Onna and I went up to Hendersonville, NC (near Asheville) where we honeymooned three years ago at The Kilarney House (a bed and breakfast). We had a lovely time together and were able to enjoy downtown Asheville and go to our favorite pub/pizzaria, Barley's Taproom.

While we were in Asheville, Onna and I had talked about the strong possibility of moving up to Asheville after Onna finishes her Midwife Apprenticeship and I finish Paramedic school. My school start date, however, has been delayed yet again. It was originally scheduled to start 4 Dec 06 and was bumped to 8 Jan 07 (tomorrow). Now, they do not know WHEN it will start, but estimate some time in March. The problem lies, I believe, in the paperwork needed to go through at Midlands Technical College. We are the first Paramedic class, here, taught by Midlands EMS but also receive college credit at Midlands Technical College. Though I would love nothing more than to start Paramedic school, I will more appreciate having 36 credits paid for, and applicable toward a degree.

Though we know we cannot make a move until we are finished with our schooling, Onna and I are looking at land on which we can build our hay-bail house. We are thrilled at the possibility of owning a few acres in the mountains, but are intimidated at the reality of finances, etc. We will go where the Lord leads, but we will plan on the possibility of moving to Asheville within the next few years.